I purchased an RO unit awhile ago and I went to using bubbled tap water to get the chlorine out and sit for 24 hr Worked fine and dandy then we’ll now my friends have all gotten a lot bigger and thirstier and I don’t have any bigger than a 5 gallon bucket and I run through 5 gallons a day now I am going back to RO.Am I going to be ok if I add a Calmag product like this to the RO water every time I water to offset the cost of RO leaching mineral content causing bigger problem? Waiting on trying to conjure up one of those blue barrels or a really good brute trash can
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I haven’t used that brand specifically but it should probably work. I use Cali magic, every feed and watering at the recommended dose.
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I think I like that product better is it just Cal and Mag or did they try to sneak Nitrogen or Iron in there?Last time I used RO I didn’t know better to add Minerals and it wound up a Greek tragedy 
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I think it’s just cal and mag, last season I completely spaced that I needed to supplement and like you said… a tragedy 
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Never again
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I asked for a calmag product free of N and got a weird look from muh hydroshop guy.
That’s what I got.
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Are they using the Nitrogen as a nutrient vehicle?
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“Calcium derived from calcium nitrate is about 19% Nitrogen”
Most manufacturers blah.blah 4% N
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That’s calcium hydroxide + magnesium carbonate, with fulvic acetic and citric acid.
Base nutrients should already have calcium already. The only reason to use calmag is in unwashed coco.
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Not sure I follow.So if RO water is stripping your soil (I don’t use Coir )how are you supposed to get those nutrients back into the soil if the soil is my base and the RO is taking out what I need?
The strange look was because the person at your hydro shop knows what they’re talking about… as they should.
That is a bottle of one of the very few Cal/Mag combinations that has absolutely no nitrogen in it. It’s an organic cal/mag chelate that works very well. I’ve used it on plants during mid-late veg outdoors.
Back to the topic at hand.
Reverse Osmosis removes everything in water that is larger in size than a molecule of water, anything that is smaller than the size of a molecule of water will remain, that being said, RO water is not totally purified, but it is definitely devoid of any nutrient or mineral. RO water is pretty much dead water until you put something in it.
As a grower, using RO water gives you complete control over what nutrients and/or minerals your plant receives.
RO water doesn’t strip the plant or soil of nutrients/minerals like it will to people that drink RO water.
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Two of these and you’re good!! lol
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If RO doesn’t strip minerals and I already have the minerals in place and I have the correct ph (I always run my water between 6.3 and 6.4)What would be causing the issues with the nutrient def last time? I’ve been using a good soil probe for moisture so I’m not overwatering but I’m not giving them drought stress either .My room temps at night being around 73 low side for lights off high side during hot times of day 88 degrees.They don’t have any heat stress no pests other than a dirtgnat here or two thier almost extinct again with those dunks.No PM with the LABS either.
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Soil is a peat vermiculite perlite mix
Been looking at these do you use them?I was going to get a Brute Industrial trash can but thier freaking expensive as hell now those look like almost the same quality.Was wondering about the plastic leach on those.The price of the brute trash can I can almost have a 55 gallon blue barrel with a spout kit and unscrewable lid
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When I started . My buddy told me I needed two reservoirs …one for bubbled water and one for nutrients with pump n stone also.
He used big plastic trash cans successfully.4 maybe lol
I just bought the cheapest I could find to start . Two Christmas wrapping paper bins from Walmart lolthey lasted 2 years. One just broke outside from dropping it. It cracked.
Other still good but handles broke.
The big heavy duty plastic garbage cans would work great.
Edit - I never considered the plastic leach factor…
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The leach thing is new to me I never considered it until i heard some chatter about it
I personally think it would be fine unless you are going for like 110% organic lol
I mean even having plastic pots or drain pans could be a problem…
If you’re emptying the reservoirs every few days and the water is circulating in and out and not sitting still - and its not warm - maybe there is no potential for toxicity from the plastic…
If yuu already bought the filter then may as well try it out !!
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Don’t forget to get a float valve for your reservoir un less u enjoy flooding your reservoir over
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Cannabis roots don’t mind drying out a little on top and the drying medium also encourages the roots to grow in search of water. Bottom watering encourages root growth as well.
As long as the medium isn’t so dry that it has pulled away from the sides of the container. That is definitely too dry.
If your medium always stays moist, then you are most likely overwatering.
This can cause nutrient fluctuations by effectively leaching nutrients out of your growing medium. It can also stunt the growth of the plant by displacing needed available oxygen in the root zone.
This condition causes anaerobic bacteria/pathogenic conditions that can cause root rot and other fungal diseases due to lack of fresh oxygen in the rhizosphere.
Allowing the medium to dry out between waterings is important for optimal plant health.
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